1. Field of the Invention
This invention concerns internal combustion engines, and more particularly relates to the starting of such engines without a conventionally employed storage battery or other energy source.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Internal combustion engines operate on the principle that a liquid fuel, when ignited and combusted in a cylinder equipped with a reciprocating piston, generates a large volume of gas which pushes the piston toward the opposite extremity of the cylinder. In order to start the engine, fuel must be within the cylinder while the piston is at its outer-most point of travel within the cylinder, often referred to as Top Dead Center of the "power stroke", and means must be provided for igniting or "firing" the fuel. In engines having a multiplicity of cylinders whose pistons cooperatively engage a crankshaft, the sequence of firing of the cylinders is important in the starting and continued operation of the engine.
Before the advent of storage batteries, internal combustion engines such as those on automotive vehicles were started by hand-cranking. The crank was geared so as to rotate the crankshaft. When manually rotated, the crankshaft performs the several sequential steps involved in the normal running of the engine, namely: feeding fuel to the cylinders, producing properly staged movement of the pistons, and supplying a magneto-generated spark to appropriate cylinders by way of a "distributor" switching device. However, the manual cranking of an engine is difficult even with relatively small engines, and almost impossible with high horsepower engines employed in modern vehicles.
Internal combustion engines, as on automotive vehicles, can be extremely difficult to start in cold weather or after long standing, even when the engine is equipped with a heavy duty storage battery and starter motor adapted to rotate the crankshaft.
Various expedients have been proposed for starting internal combustion devices. For example, explosive devices have been disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,877,936 and elsewhere. Modifications involving the delivery to the cylinders of a highly volatile starting fuel such as dimethyl ether is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,053,321; 3,494,340; 3,661,133; 5,119,775 and 5,195,477.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,348,621 concerns an engine starting system equipped with means driven independently of the normal engine timing for effecting intake and exhaust in the engine cylinders and for timing the ignition means. The equipment required is of complex construction, and cannot be feasibly retrofitted onto engines of ordinary design. Also, a storage battery and accompanying starter motor are still necessary components of this system.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a method for starting an internal combustion engine.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a method as in the foregoing object which does not require use of a storage battery, starter motor or other energy source such as a flywheel or external means of cranking the engine.
It is another object of the present invention to provide manually operable apparatus for accomplishing the aforesaid method for starting an internal combustion engine.
It is a still further object of this invention to provide apparatus of the aforesaid nature which is easily installable upon and compatible with internal combustion engines of conventional design.
These objects and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description.